


The History of the Rise and Fall of the Bizkantine Empire

by Mazarin



Category: Homestuck, Snowbound Blood, Vast Error
Genre: (because there is a war), Byzantine allusions, Edward Gibbon mention, F/F, Fantrolls, Lesbians, Snowbound blood - Freeform, Some siege mentions, Some war, Vast Error - Freeform, lazy quirks, one or two gross violence mentions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-06-20
Packaged: 2020-05-15 05:24:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19289029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mazarin/pseuds/Mazarin
Summary: "I trust you've heard of the Bizkantine Empire?""Nobody hasn't heard of the Bizkantines. One of the older civilizations known to Repiton's past, they were famed a rowdy, macabre bunch in their golden age. In this age though they're lost: the skeletons of their society all that's left of them."





	The History of the Rise and Fall of the Bizkantine Empire

**Author's Note:**

> The levels of derivation it took to get to this work right here borders on asinine. The route looks something like this: Homestuck is created. Then, there's this pretty good fanventure called Vast Error. Then it gets its own friendsim spinoff called Snowbound Blood. Then, someone writing for SB decided to make an allusion to the Byzantines, and I fell for it hook, line, and sinker.  
> I've been hyped for updates of SB mostly for seeing such good writing and fun, interesting characters, but the back of my mind gnaws at my gray matter demanding more Byzantine trolls. Troll Justinian, Troll Theodora, Troll Basil, and Troll Constantine: they've all been sieging my damn neurons like endless gnats on a really hot, southern day. I had to do something to quench the urge. This is that something: A big festering pile of contemplative pre-Renaissance Repiton lore which most likely isn't very canon at all, but I still had fun with it.

###### The following text has been recovered and left unedited by Corporate for the time being. If any employees find something deemed unprofitable within the text, contact Hamifi Hekrix for censorship details and protocol.

 

**THE HISTORY OF THE RISE AND FALL OF THE BIZKANTINE EMPIRE**

A history compiled by Edwurd Gibben

 

CHAPTER ONE: THE EXTENT OF THE REPITONIAN EMPIRE AND THE BEGINNINGS OF THE BIZKANTINES IN THE AGE OF TAIKIE

 

It is universally known across Repiton how the latter ages of the Repitonian Empire came to collapse due to the inner structures of imperial bureaucracy undermining the traditional roles of rulership and the aristocracy single-handedly destroying itself from within. Perhaps more infamous, however, would be the short-lived yet exhilarating history of the offshoot sovereign power alongside the dying days of our own: the well-known, serene, and agreeable **[CORPORATE EMPLOYMENT ASSET #49070: Antonym-/fy prev/ous l/st, remove oxford comma]** bunch known collectively as the Bizkantine Empire.

Well before the Age of Caesar Consceleratus Persolus whilst the Repitonian Empire was still functioning mainly through the direct power and despotism of an Emperor's sole will rather than corporate take-over **[#49070: Reword for f/nal ed/t/on]** , the majority of the lands were united peacefully, and there seemed to be no cause for trouble. The only room for error was the vast size of the Repitonian Empire's all-encompassing reach over the continent, which at the time spanned across several differing coastlines. Stretched borders caused an internal struggle for power all across the board, and localities were beginning to hold more sway than they did in the past since the Emperor could not handle the day to day affairs of every province now that there had begun an outburst of new provinces it seemed almost weekly.

Imperial court meetings housed rumors and suspicions of divvying up the royal power. This never happened, of course. Rather, a good portion of Repitonian citizens revolted and decided that they would command the separation of powers by themselves. The Bizkantine Rebellion is infamous in the minds of many today. Are these ill-founded assumptions justified? The general, sweeping explanation for Taikie's revolution these days seems to be a consensus that the leader went mad and amassed an army out of insanity and rage. Rage, perhaps yes, but I believe Taikie Bizkan was not without reason **[CORPORATE EMPLOYMENT ASSET #12042: Vh, cvt this sentence probably. Maybe also the one after it]**. One cannot construct such a rebellion just on a whim of overwhelming anger, which is why I'm sure her intentions were thought out extensively.

Few of her own writings were salvaged, but contemporary sources at the time indicate Taikie's truer intentions in a fairly clear manner. The corruption of the mid-stage Repitonian Empire becomes indicative of our future struggles with Corporate now, and the buildup of wealth in the hands of the few somehow went unnoticed by the majority save for Taikie and the followers she could muster. I believe the mass characterization of the Bizkantine Empire as a rowdy, macabre, barbaric civilization may actually lie within some upper echelons of corporate trying to spread soft lies about the Bizkantines true natures and initial reasons for rebellion to make sure it doesn't happen again. Upon a very close examination of the lengthier, verifiable source material one can only gather in very small circles, most of the Bizkantines and their rulers after Taikie seem to be rather levelheaded and the majority's take on their reign today I don't think entirely adds up with how they seemed to behave. **[#12042: Geez. Can we keep** **_any_ ** **of this?]**

Taikie herself in appearance remains shrouded in mystery, though most seem to comment she had teal blood, wore her hair in an unnaturally long braid, and possessed almost constantly droopy, tired eyes. The beginnings of revolution which she inspired in her close circles of friends and then expanded outward to an entire demographic of like-minded, disillusioned trolls were slow and arduous to maintain, perhaps being a good reason for her drowsy appearance. Yet she held fast, evident by the length of her society's existence and its name taking directly after hers alone.  While her rebellions building was slow at the start, eventually they amassed enough mercenaries and support for their sacking of several cities and establishment of long-standing settlements out in the tundra where few Repitonians dared to stay for long, ensuring they wouldn't be bothered by outsiders often.

I believe the best place to begin my in-depth explanations of the military strategies and political intrigue involved in the life and times of the early Bizkantine rule under Taikie should begin briefly before the empire starts itself up. To explain succinctly the times before the Empire's complete independence, I will begin our history's narrative during the first retaliation of the Repitonians against the Bizkantine hold in the tundra. In this battle, Taikie revealed her overwhelming resilience, but also, based on some lesser known accounts, her underappreciated talents in rhetoric and charisma.  

* * *

Your name is Taikie Bizkan, and everyone who's against you right now _will_ come to regret it. You have not assembled this society piecemeal from the ground up for it to be taken apart in front of you. Too much work, too much blood, sweat, and tears have brought you and everyone you love here. Your name is Taikie Bizkan; you're only twelve sweeps old, but you've hated Repiton's politics since the day you were hatched; your army's behind you; Repiton's forces are in front of you, and you are absolutely enraged.

It's not like you haven't been preparing for this battle for a long time now. Ever since your group managed to trudge through this god-forsaken tundra, it has been your number one priority of making life bearable here. Haphazardly-placed stone walls circle the perimeter of an early settlement at work. You made sure beforehand to relay the message that food would need to be stored in bulk. You didn't admit it at the time, but you knew you wanted to make sure you had extra stores of everything in the case of a potential siege like this one. Your fortification's ballistics and weapons to guard the walls were generously supplied by your other half, Aireen. Being a rust-blood, she didn't ever have a surplus of goods or wealth to make life easier for her, so she tended to construct the essentials herself. Somehow, those skills easily transferred over to crafting catapults and ballistas. You're completely enamored with her, but that's besides the point. She's come up behind you now; you can tell it's her by the way she rests her hands on your shoulders.

  
AIREEN: the repitonians are so close and yet still so far in the distance...  
TAIKIE: We don't hαve thαt much time. The more those blurs in the distαnce come into focus, the αntsier I get.  
AIREEN: i'm the same... i don't think they're advancing without pause, though...  
TAIKIE: Oh?  
AIREEN: no... alexeo got back to us after all... turns out they're working on a "circumvallation..."  
TAIKIE: Tell Alexeo to speαk normαlly next time.  
AIREEN: a siege wall, hon...  
TAIKIE: Hαh! Are you telling me we built our own wαlls for nothing?  
AIREEN: well, it seems they built it out of the belief that we'd want to run back to civilization once our supplies run low...  
TAIKIE: As if. We stocked up here for a reαson. I don't ever plαn to go back, αnd if they believe with one fucking ounce I decided to stαy out here just to flαke αwαy from my dream, they're deαd wrong. My αss is freezing, αnd it sure αs hell isn't for nothing.  
AIREEN: we'll agree to disagree, then...  
TAIKIE: You don't wαnt to stαy?  
AIREEN: no, about your ass.... it's positively smoking...

Sometimes, even despite the cold, you warm up without any prior indication. You hate it when you feel yourself blush, and then your mouth quivers, and you have no rational reaction to this besides punching your matesprit in the shoulder while trying not to crack up. It's ok, though, because she laughs at her own joke for you. There is something serene to you, maybe it's the atmosphere of this moment or general, or maybe it's something about her that makes you this way, but either way, it's nice to know that even standing on such fortified battlements facing an outnumbering foe, you still have room for laughter.

Some people are free to disagree with the notion that any jovial activity is acceptable however, and he's approaching you both now. Though not one for fun, you respect him a good deal and all things considered he is your co-general of sorts. Sputtering and out of breath as he tends to be, Alexeo jogs over to you both, panting before he speaks when he reaches you.  

  
ALEXEO: Aπologies for the intrusion, but if I may be so rude as to intrude on your πresent conversation, what on Reπiton are the two of you doing at a time like this,?  
TAIKIE: Wαtching the enemy. They αre αll the way over there, αfter αll.  
ALEXEO: Right, of course, and that means it is no time for jokes, Aireen, did you even notify Miss Bizkan of the circumvallation situation,?  
AIREEN: i told her about the siege wall, yes...  
ALEXEO: Then you both baffle me even more,! Must I insist a third time now this is no time for fun and games,  
TAIKIE: Lex, I'm so deeply sorry for lαughing on the job. Did you hαve something you wαnted to sαy other thαn thαt, though?  
ALEXEO: As a matter of fact, I did, Uhm, I was curious about the battle πlans, They highly outnumber us, and now it seems that they're hellbent on locking us uπ here, Our only battle ground is the πlain between our wall and theirs,  
AIREEN: and the hill in the middle...  
ALEXEO: Excuse me,? Oh--yes, and the hill that is in the middle of the πlain,  
TAIKIE: Good thing you reminded me αbout it, Aireen. I think I know α good course of αction, but I'm sure Lex won't αppreciate it. It's α little bold.  
ALEXEO: I'm right here, you can refer to me directly, thank you, And I'm all-ears to any πroπosition,  
TAIKIE: Alright. I'll eαse your eαrs into it. Repiton's prepαring α siege, right?  
ALEXEO: Obviously,  
TAIKIE: Like α reαlly, reαlly long one. Dαys worth.  
ALEXEO: I'm not sure you know how long a "really, really long" siege qualifies as,I believe the longest ones in history count to sweeπs,  
TAIKIE: Okαy, sweeps even then, they're stockpiling up for the long hαul, yeαh?  
ALEXEO: Those are the facts we've πreviously established that you're reπeating back to me right now, yes,  
TAIKIE: Sαy I don't like being besieged.  
ALEXEO: Not very many do,  
TAIKIE: And I wαnted to get this ordeαl over with quickly.  
ALEXEO: Reasonable,  
TAIKIE: Then I sαy we go fight them right now, mαke sure no siege ever hαs to hαppen.  
ALEXEO: WHAT,  
AIREEN: you're thinking about fortifying the hill...?  
TAIKIE: Exαctly.  
ALEXEO: EXCUSE ME,  
AIREEN: that could work, actually...  
TAIKIE: We should go soon then. I'd sαy first thing in the night so we cαn set up cαmp hopefully without them cαtching on too fast.  
ALEXEO: SOON--I--THIS--Kheπaria, guide me,  
TAIKIE: You're in αgreement?  
ALEXEO: If you believe it's better for us to get it over with, I trust you, You might even be right,  
AIREEN: is that a veiled way of admitting defeat...?  
TAIKIE: Don't rub it in, love. Lex, you cαn leαd the left flank when we get there. Get the word αround town. I'll mαke some notices αnd memos for the boαrd. We should leαve by tonight.  


With that, you turn immediately to go down to your tent to start working on the papers to put up around town. You set up a system of notification boards all around to place to make sure everyone knew there was still tons of important business to work on. Your note turns out a little something like this:

WHY BE BESIEGED WHEN YOU CAN AGGRIEVE? GATHER IN TOWN SQUARE BEFORE SUNDOWN, ARMORED AND ARMED.

You like to be succinct.

 

Marching quietly in the darkness of the night, guided by little except the stars, is more difficult than you first imagined. You look at your surroundings, of course, not seeing much, but being aware of all the many thousands around you, willing to set up camp with you and rush the Repitonians come sunrise. Just that much is enough to fill your heart with pride.

Eventually, your boots take notice of a gradual incline in the dirt below you. You reach out your hand and lean forward slightly. Yep, that's a hill. Steep one. You turn around, grabbing the air aimlessly searching for any arm available, whispering to any nearby person to notify all around them that they're here, and we can all stop this buffoonery now.  Several trolls in the ranks begin setting up temporary tents and campfires for the night. Aireen helps you set up your own once the dim firelight is struck. You wonder if the Repitonians can see the smoke through the black, night sky. You hope they do.

You spend some time in your tent talking with Aireen, Alexeo, and a few other military advisers before you head off to bed. Aireen and you are to command the right flank. Alexeo leads the left. You have all the time in the world to make the first move upon the Repitonian lines. For them, storming the ridge of the hill was no advisable maneuver. One adviser revealed to the others that he had gone quickly to view the enemy camp. It seems like the Repitonians are already in position, standing and waiting for your attack. The fact that their forces have to stand in waiting, hopefully in fear of your arrival, it puts a smile on your face as you fall asleep.

 

  
AIREEN: taikie...?  


You're not quite sure you heard something. Maybe just a bird.

  
AIREEN: taikie, please get up...  


You always have trouble getting up in the morning. Everything sounds so muffled, and you can barely see before you rub the sleep out of your eyes.

  
AIREEN: taikie...love...TAIKIE, IF YOU DON'T WAKE UP THIS SECOND--...  


HOLY FUCK.

  
TAIKIE: HOLY FUCK. WHAT. Whαt time is it? Why αre you yelling?  
AIREEN: you overslept again... it's about noon...  
TAIKIE: Noon?! Why didn't you wαke me up sooner?  
AIREEN: you sleep like a log... don't say I didn't try...  
TAIKIE: Noon, αugh. Are we deαd αlreαdy? Did the Repitoniαns get us? How's the town?  
AIREEN: they're waiting for us still on the plains... we're on the hill, remember...? they wouldn't dare march up here...  
TAIKIE: Right, of course. Uh. Excuse me while I get reαdy, I'll be out in α minute.  
AIREEN: what would you ever do without me...?  
TAIKIE: Wow, don't even mαke me think αbout it.  


She kisses you before she's out the door, leaving you to get dressed. Simplicities always go on first, of course. The obligatory undergarments and bandages around your chest, not to forget basic shirts, pants, and shoes, you throw them all on rather quickly. Ceremonially though, whenever you have to, you like to take more care and time into putting on your prized set of armor. Golden scales on the torso are accentuated by a background of teal cloth. All the parts of the body armor were woven together carefully with lace.

As you grab your sword and exit your tent, the legions you've put together cheer when news spreads of your awakening. You sheepishly wave as you make your way to the front lines of the right flank. Looking across the way down on the plains below, you see the Repitonian army sure is already in position. Staring out at their ranks sends chills down every bone in your body. They organize themselves by blood colors in separate legions, different castes had different plumes on their helmets to match. To think that one of those soldiers could've been you. You grip the handle of your sword tight. Presumably, they had been standing here on guard all night. You wonder how tired they are, and you wonder how little those that survive will be compensated for their work. You know how little that amount is, and it makes you grimace. Turning around helps you, looking at all those who rally behind your cause, your way of life. That's one hope that makes you smile. You raise your sword.

  
TAIKIE: Attention!  
TAIKIE: Form four files! Forwαrd!

You command the army's maneuvers with multiple shouts of shifts and turns and slight changes in direction. There's a specific shape you want to end up in here. Eventually, you manage it. It's rough and haphazard and there's a lot of backtracking, but you suppose that's to be expected from someone who only gave orders on rare occasions in the past. Back in the day, you recall, you used to shout drills like this for practice in school. You chuckle to think you're using the Repitonian commands against them in this battle now.

Your army is positioned opposite the Repitonian one in a more diagonal line made up of two rows, so that you're all slanted to the left a little more than normal. You made sure it was exactly the right angle so that the far right flank you were in would face the Repitonian's center, where the leader no doubt would be. Kind of a selfish move on your part, but you want to be the one who lobs this guy's head off, and you're not entirely ashamed of that.

Though you've already thought of where your formation should go from here, something catches you off guard. In the distance the Repitonian line's left flank, the one directly across from  you, advances on your position. So this is it, you think. You yell at the top of your lungs for your lines to march forward, spears at the ready. The fight is finally left to rage as it should. The tides of war surge hither and thither over the plains. You experienced so many simulations in school, but none of them you think could've really prepared you for this reality. Both opposing forces finally reach each other; they clash, and death's cruel fate makes itself apparent all around you. The only way to not see constant fatal reminders would be to shut your eyes tight, and even then you'd still hear screams. You try to hold the contents of your stomach in place as you watch one of your men suffer a spear through the back of his helmet and come out his forehead. Watching the Repitonian struggle to pull the spear back out through the soldier's head sickens you. You run forward, guided entirely by your own rage. You swing at him, hacking into the armor covering his right shoulder. He's still mid-retrieving his spear at this point, and you'd say it's unfair how you attacked him when he had no defenses, but fairness is completely out the window right now. You swing the sword back around your head, a trick used to confuse an opponent further than usual, and drive the sword through him, pulling it out swiftly. Swifter than he could, at least. You make sure to bend down and close the eyes of the person he killed.

You let yourself sneak away to the back of the line, making sure to call orders when they were needed or help a fellow soldier when it seemed necessary. Of course, you have no way of properly assessing the situation, but you'd say this skirmish seems to be in your favor. As you look far off to your left, you see the Repitonians have begun to storm the left flank and center parts of your line. You can do nothing but hope them and their commanders pull through.

In your present position, though, there are many individual scenes playing out before you. You almost don't notice an enemy charging towards you, and unfortunately you only become aware of that fact after a spear lodges itself into your exposed forearm. As much as it hurts, you pull through, yanking the spear and this guy's arm closer to you--close enough that you have an opening to slice his throat with your other hand. You lower your sword as quickly as possible and struggle to try and snap and break the long end of the spear. You're going to have to leave the pointy bit in. It hurts a whole fucking lot.

The next thing you focus your eyes on happens to be your matesprit. Shit. Three Repitonian soldiers got nearer and nearer to her, brandishing short swords. You glanced around quickly, no one in sight to rush to her aid. You're still struggling with breaking this goddamn spear handle. Fuck, you feel so stupid right now. Currently, you're trying to saw it off with your sword. It's working, barely. Aireen's more focused on her own conundrum. You're worried about her, but there isn't much you can do, and that bothers you. She has her own peculiar weapon she fashioned herself: a two-handed pole about as tall as her with a large flail on the end. She swings it around, knocking each soldier in front of her down, right to left. She turns around and catches you staring at her. There's blood spattered on her face, and she winks. The spear's handle you're sawing away at finally breaks into two.

You're feeling cocky now. You raise your good arm, the one you can still lift entirely without pain shooting through you, and yell new orders to your flank to rush for the Repitonian's center. They had expanded plenty of their legions to attack Alexeo's legions out on the far left. The struggle seems much more balanced on his side. You hope he isn't regretting your plan. You sure aren't. As your legions march your way to the center, you walk beside Aireen. She carries her flail over her shoulder in a way you totally don't think is hot at all. You're not even looking.

As you survey the scene from the vantage points that you can as you pass by, you take note that the most elite forces, a lot of the magentas, were sent to rush your center. Probably since Alexeo and you had agreed to widen out the sides of the lines to bait the enemy. It's probably the oldest trick in the book, and you can see before you now that the Repitonians fell for it hook, line, and sinker. Easily said and easily done, your troops most likely drew back only a bit before they enveloped the enemy. In front of you, all that's left to do is rid Repiton of this general, whoever they were. You're sure Alexeo would know their name. You're less sure, but still feel inclined, you may have slept through an early morning rebriefing where the opposing generals names were mentioned.

All the same as before, you rush towards this group of Repitonian troops. They all wear colors higher up on the hemospectrum, reserve troops placed at a higher value for being inherently richer, presumably. You spit on one of their corpses as you hack and slash your way through the opposing mob. What catches you off guard in the midst of things is this. One magenta-blooded troll, one you think you can spot as the general, considering their garb is considerably more rich looking than the rest of their entourage, begins to call orders for a retreat. You are sure as fuck not letting that happen. You yell just the same.

It's an absolute chase. You're almost having too much fun with this. Once you see your troops manage to take down the enemy general, you allow the remaining Repitonians to flee in terror, halting your army to a stop. You sheathe your sword, which takes you twice as long as usual considering your useless other arm. The general lies face-down in the snow, a pool of magenta spilled out around their neck.

You lean down to remove their magenta cape, and put it on yourself. Aireen helps you put it on and fasten its golden buckle around your shoulder. You place your hand on hers and sigh as you look up at the setting suns. You cover your tired eyes with your right hand, attempting to block them both. This entire battle is definitely going to through your sleep schedule for a loop.

 

It takes several hours for everyone to pack up the camps and supplies and bring everything back inside the main walls. That's a new addition you're certainly welcome to: two sets of walls. You're sure as hell not many are brave enough to trudge through all the snow in the first place, but two extra walls to protect you even further? Who would even dare?

Tonight, though you're more tired than you've ever been, you make sure you have a stage erected and braziers lit so you can deliver a semi-impromptu speech. Before all this, before you take your first steps to speak in front of all these people who've decided to follow you, Aireen and Alexeo graciously agreed to help you pull the spear head out of your arm. You hold the bandages around the recent wound as you approach the front of the stage, stopping only to wave at everyone gathered in the town center. You admit to yourself you're a little nervous. It's something you don't admit even subconsciously very often. You take a deep breath.

  
TAIKIE: Hi. As most of you mαy know, though I'm not αssuming everyone does becαuse I'm not _thαt_ full of myself, uh, my nαme is Tαikie Bizkαn. I wαnted to talk to you αfter our overwhelming victory αgainst the dαmn Repitoniαns to congrαtulαte you αll αnd αlso to push us forward to α new, hopeful future.  
TAIKIE: When I wαs still living under complete Repitoniαn rule, I dropped out of military school αs soon αs I could. We're αll here becαuse we know the evils of the inner workings of Repiton. We've αll seen it, experienced it first hαnd. Everyone of us has, this is something I have no doubt αbout.  I reαlized how corrupt the system really wαs when my school αssignments hαd me αcting more αs α lαp dog collecting money from poor citizens. I becαme cruel αnd hαd to plαy my role αs α soldier while functioning αs α tαx collector. Obviously, my morαls couldn't tαke it. And eventuαlly, I reαlized I didn't hαve to.  
TAIKIE: There is α deep-rooted problem in the Empire αs it is right now, αnd I'm not sure if there is αny way to sαve it. The rich only get richer, enough to the point where they're beginning to bribe their own rulers to gαin the upper hαnd. An empire run by exploitαtive pαrαsites sure αs fuck isn't one I wαnt to live under. Perhαps someone could sαlvαge the ruins once it inevitαbly collαpses, but I'm not going to sit αround αnd wαit thαt long. I hαte wαiting. So I've come here, αnd you αll stuck it out with me.  
TAIKIE: I'm so proud of αll of us for thαt. I meαn, this is the fucking tundrα for Khepαriα's sαke. Only αll of us together could even begin to survive out here, but I know we're going to make it work. Ah, αm I rαmbling? Is the purpose of a speech to rαmble? Hαng on. Let me try to get to the point.    
TAIKIE: When I came out here with αll of you, I didn't tαke much. Especiαlly not αny loops. I wαnt this hαppy civilizαtion we hαve here to prosper, αnd not from weαlth, but genuine hαppiness αnd productivity, unhindered by commαndeering money-hounds αnd higher-ups. We're αll on equαl footing here.  
TAIKIE: We αll have αn equal chαnce to do whαtever, whenever, and however we pleαse. You cαn be governors; you cαn be generαls; you cαn be cαptαins, αll αt no expense of living except for the common courtesy of mαking everyone's living better.  
TAIKIE: Whαt rewαrds do I hαve from my labors this pαst bαttle? Merely my new, stylish mαgenta cloαk αnd α mαkeshift diαdem. But those αre just the mαteriαlistic possessions. Most importαntly, I hαve you αll here with me. Words cαnnot express whαt high hopes I hαve for us αnd the generαtions to come. Keep rising.  

**Author's Note:**

> Taikie, as it is pronounced (tie-key), is a diminutive of the name Constantine. Aireen is just me making Irene have six letters. Alexeo is Alexeos with an 's' chopped off. These are what the refrances.  
> Some of these refrances...I will leave for the crowd to figure out. For example, the battle depicted is HEAVILY reminiscent of another ancient battle. Maybe not one of Constantine's in particular? Perhaps...another ancient Great person? Who knows? Said person is also referenced in Taikie's end speech. Last line is also a very non-subtle nod to someone. A whole entire pint of good feelings to whomever unlocks the mysteries.  
> If you read all the way through, I am very proud of you, and I hope you have a good day. Pls let me know what you think of my dudes, I may or may not write like, one or two more chapters of this. Already have some ideas in the works on the absolutely devastating downfall of this civilization.


End file.
